This song was written in response to the 2009 suicide of a close friend that Armstrong grew up with in Rodeo, CA. However, the song is as much about the entire "Generation X" (those born from roughly 1960-1980) as it is about this one specific tragedy. Billie Joe has repeatedly identified himself as an "Ex-Kid" in recent interviews. The narrator is able to relate to his late friend, in that they were both "Ex/X-kids." But, he was able to push through the struggles that came with growing older, while his friend was not. His friend, unfortunately, found an escape in suicide, thus the line "Here goes nothing, the shouting's over." The narrator sees facets of himself in his late friend. He feels as if, sadly, there wasn't much that could have been done to help his friend, though he wishes some